Magazine Review: ASIMOV'S Science Fiction, March/April 2020

ASIMOV’S SCIENCE FICTION MAGAZINE March/April 2020 (Dell Magazines) by Sheila Williams, Editor 

CONTENTS 

NOVELLA

"Semper Augustus" by Nancy Kress

NOVELETTES

"In Our Stars" by James Gunn

"Beyond the Tattered Veil of Stars", by Mercurio D. Rivera

"Opportunity Space", by Nathan Hillstrom

SHORT STORIES

"A Summary of our Neighborhood’s Salvation After the Storm", by Jason Sanford

"Skin", by Garrett Ashley

"Rena in the Desert", by Lia Swope Mitchell

"So Long as We Both", by Tom Purdom

"Return to the Red Castle", by Ray Nayler

"Tachyon Hearts Cannot Love", by Derek Künsken  

My FIVE-STAR Review on the Goodreads website . . . . .

There are two incredible stories in here that make this well worth the asking price of $7.99.

A long novella by Nancy Kress is the topper. "Sempus Augustus" is a coming-of-age tale of a young girl from birth into her early twenties set against the back-drop of a near future (before and after 2037) that doesn't seem too far away from our present circumstances. Aliens have brought new technology to Earth and that, coupled with the rise of automation and robotics, has created a huge class of low income and unemployed living in cities too poor to maintain services adequately. There's an organized group that is turning to violence in their methods of resistance to government, big corporations, and bling-asses (the wealthy elite). Kress focuses on the social aspects and human characters of her story rather than the technology, and this makes for very compelling and fluid reading. Poor Jennie, abandoned by her mother, raised by a hard-nosed grandmother who kept her isolated until the age of eight, possessed of echo memory and growing up fast once she gets to school and beyond (a short lived career as a clothing model, then active engagement with the resistance group). The ending ties up all storylines very neatly. It's been decades since I've read anything by Kress, and I've forgotten how good of a storyteller she is. This stands up with her best. FIVE STARS.

Also make a note to check out this one - - "Beyond The Tattered Veil Of Stars" by Mercurio D. Rivera. It deserves to find a place in one of Best-Of-Year anthologies. A scientist hoping to determine the tipping points of a climate plagued Earth constructs a miniature virtual Earth, populates it with several different intelligent species (none human) and then creates disasters and conflicts, learning from how they handle the situation in order develop some answers/solutions for humankind. This takes an unexpected turn near the end. Brilliant. FIVE STARS out of a possible Five Stars. 

I

t's been several years since I picked up an issue of Asimov's Science Fiction magazine. If this issue is any indication of the usual quality of the contents then I need to revisit more often. The March/April 2020 issue is consistently above average and offers a good variety of stories and themes. Some of the highlights for me were:

"A Summary Of Our Neighborhood's Salvation After The Storm" by Jason Sanford about an evangelical organization rolling a truck into a devastated neighborhood following a natural disaster and promising salvation with the assist of some high-tech tools. But what the neighborhood really needs is fool and assistance. I couldn't help but hear "Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show" by Neil Diamond running through my head as I was reading this. FOUR STARS.

The highly imaginative "Skin" by Garrett Ashley tells of gelatinous alien beings trying to assimilate into Earth society by squeezing into skin suits, which often become worn out and develop tears and rips which allow their true essence to ooze out with disastrous effects. FOUR STARS.

A desert highway motel completely automated becomes a trap for Rena in "Rena In The Desert" by Lia Swope Mitchell, an engaging story that I didn't want to end because it left too many unanswered questions about the state of the world and Rena's objectives. Here's hoping Mitchell decides to expand this into a novel. FOUR STARS.

"So Long As We Both" by Tom Purdom is a speculative tale about immortality as a far-future married couple consider whether to have another child (surrogate mother), an issue that requires them to seek counseling as it becomes divisive. Thoughtful and interesting, although I'm not sure what the author's main point is. THREE AND ONE-HALF STARS.

T

here is some great world-building in "Opportunity Space" by Nathan Hillstrom as well as a highly imaginative and visualized alien race. However, the story suffers a bit from being a bit longer than needed, and in some parts the tech and alien physiology are a bit too vague for clarity. I did not empathize with the main character until the very end. THREE AND ONE-HALF STARS.